Second great white shark caught at Bondi Beach, Sydney, this week

A SHARK sighting has emptied Bondi Beach on one of the hottest weekends of spring. It comes after two great whites were found in the nets this week.

A SHARK spotted in the water at Bondi this afternoon has emptied the iconic Sydney beach, in the same week that two great whites were found dead in the shark nets.

Throngs of swimmers cleared the water about 3pm today when North Bondi lifesavers spotted the shark and sounded the alarm across the packed beach. It’s one of the hottest weekends in Sydney this side of winter, with temperatures expected to reach 26C today and 35C tomorrow.

Lifesavers on jetskis were deployed to deter the shark back out to sea, and swimmers returned to the water 45 minutes later.

Here is a better photo of the shark that emptied Bondi Beach pic.twitter.com/dEgL069zCH

— TriZone (@TriathlonZone) November 22, 2014

Not the first shark at Bondi this week:

A great white shark was caught in nets at Bondi Beach this morning, the second of the predators found dead at the popular swimming spot this week.

The New South Wales Department of Primary Industries said the carcass, which was found at the northern end of the beach about 500 metres from the shoreline, had been removed.

“A deceased male great white shark approximately 2.15 metres (7 feet) in length was retrieved from a shark net off the northern end of Bondi Beach this morning,” a spokeswoman said today.

“A 1.1 metre stingray was found alive in the net and successfully released.”

Water completely empty now... Except for a few lone surfers. #Bondi #shark pic.twitter.com/Y7eGgAJT1v

— Annabelle Carter (@AnnabelleCarter) November 22, 2014

Shark alarm at Bondi. Everyone clear the water. pic.twitter.com/WRnqQMB8ia

— Jen Browning (@jen_browning) November 22, 2014

On Wednesday a 2.5 metre great white was found during the regular inspections of the nets at Bondi which are designed to protect swimmers from the animals.

Popular beaches across Sydney and New South Wales state have been partially netted since 1937.

While the netting -- which does not stretch the entire length of Bondi -- is there to create a barrier between swimmers and sharks, it is also designed to stop the animals establishing territories where people use the water.

Zero fatalities ... There has not been a single fatal shark attack on a netted Sydney beach since they were introduced in 1937.

The department said there had not been a single fatal shark attack on a netted Sydney beach since the nets were introduced.

The nets occasionally catch marine animals, with official data for the 2012-2013 summer showing that more than 100 sharks became entangled in nets across New South Wales. Only three were great whites.

Contractors check the nets every 72 hours, weather permitting, and are required to free all live marine life found in the nets if it is practical and safe to do so.

A 2.5m great white was caught in the Bondi nets on Wednesday. Photo: Nick Wenham

Shark attacks in Sydney are rare, but deaths and injuries routinely occur around Australia.

In October two great whites were killed after a young surfer lost parts of both arms in an attack off the south coast of Western Australia.

The most recent fatality was in September when a man was killed in front of his wife while swimming at Byron Bay on the New South Wales east coast.mfc/lm